"I told my boys I am very proud of them. Blame me not the players."
While Vogts deserves immense credit for bringing his team this far after a disappointing start to his reign, Holland's emphatic victory should breath fresh life into Dick Advocaat's squad.
The Little General has worn the look of a man under siege all week but last night his battle tactics were spot on.
To overlook such experienced campaigners as Frank De Boer, Patrick Kluivert, Clarence Seedorf and Giovanni van Bronckhorst from his starting line-up was a brave decision that paid off as Holland's new generation came of age.
The 19- year- o ld Sneijder controlled the midfield with his tireless running and accurate distribution, opening the scoring with a 25-yard screamer and creating the next four goals, while Manchester United's Ruud van Nistelrooy finally established himself as his country's top striker with a wonderful hat-trick. The other goals came from De Boer and Andre Ooijer.
Advocaat is notoriously difficult to please but even the old curmudgeon couldn't find fault with his team's performance. He said: "For Ruud to score three goals was a great performance. I'm very pleased for him because he didn't score on Saturday. He worked like a horse, as did the whole team.
"It was his best performance in the Dutch national team. Sneijder also looked very good and moved the ball very quickly.
"Last night I saw the Dutch side that should've played at Hampden, and we pressurised Scotland from the start. On Saturday my players did not do as I asked but yesterday they did. I changed the players, not the tactics."
Romantics will mourn Scotland's demise but Euro 2004 would be a poorer place without Holland. Only France can match Advocaat's squad in terms of talent, and they could give the holders a run for their money if they prepare properly.
